


Sleep it off

by kitbug



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Drinking, F/F, Past Thane Krios/Shepard, Smooching, and the omega dlc smooch, inspired by that scene in purgatory, when you get smashed and wake up on aria's couch
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-05
Updated: 2018-02-05
Packaged: 2019-03-13 20:12:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13578105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kitbug/pseuds/kitbug
Summary: When the Normandy docks at the Citadel to refuel after Thessia, Shepard goes to Purgatory and gets shitfaced. Aria looks after her.





	Sleep it off

Aria watched as Shepard tore through Purgatory like a charging krogan.  Those that didn’t remove themselves from her path were shoved out of the way.  One man grabbed her shoulder, and Aria didn’t hear what was said, but she didn’t need to.  Shepard’s fist made it clear.  No one else tried to stop the woman after that.  Aria jerked a finger to motion Grizz over.  The turian trotted over like a well-trained dog and leaned down to hear her over the bar’s thrumming techno music.

“Keep an eye on the Commander,” Aria said quietly, gaze intent on Shepard’s back as she took a seat at the bar above them.  The human pounded back a shot and gestured for another.  In Aria’s experience, Shepard rarely drank for the sake of being drunk.  In public, at least.  “Make sure she doesn’t get into any… trouble.”

Grizz followed her eyes and nodded.  She didn’t have to clarify who she spoke of.  There was only one person she actually referred to by their rank.  He slipped up the stairs and sat down at a nearby table.  He was close enough to stop any problems, but far enough away to not draw the human’s attention--though right now, Aria doubted she was able to see anything beyond the rim of her glass.  Unlike most of his kind, Grizz knew how to be subtle.

Satisfied that the human was in capable hands, Aria relaxed back into the embrace of the couch and surveyed her temporary domain.  It was too clean and proper for her tastes, but it was as close to home as she was going to get in the Citadel.  The usual rich trash and soldiers on leave milled about, but the bar where Shepard sat was conspicuously less crowded.  She wasn’t certain if it was Shepard’s reputation or Grizz’s watchful glare, but they were smart to stay away.  

Aria took a glowing blue cocktail from the waitress taking care of her lounge tonight and sipped it.  

She would never admit it aloud, but she’d always been fond of Shepard.  The human took shit from no one, was upfront and honest in her dealings, and never went back on her word.  Aria’s fondness had only increased during the siege on Omega, when Shepard followed her lead, matched her step for step, and fought the ground war like a juggernaut.  Shepard’s combat skills had been awe-inspiring.  They only butted heads over one thing--the human shared Nyreen’s infuriating blindspot for “the innocent.”  Still, no one was perfect.

A commotion above drew her attention.  She couldn’t see or really hear what was going on, but Grizz was no longer at his table.  A moment later, he emerged from the crowd, carrying a very drunk and irate Shepard over his shoulder.  In the huge turian’s arms, the human looked like a child throwing a tantrum.  He set her on Aria’s couch and took his place by the entrance to the lounge once more.  When she realized where she was and who she was now with, Shepard quieted and glared, arms crossed over her chest in a show of perfect human petulance.

This close, Aria could see lines under her eyes and the glow of rejected cybernetics carved in her cheeks.  What had been hints of scarring before was rough and jagged like an unhealing wound, glowing an angry orange against her tanned skin.  She had lost weight since they’d last met, on Omega two months prior.  Aria wondered when she’d last slept a full night.  The war had been kind to no one, and Shepard least of all.

Shepard gave her a surly glance and nodded.  “Aria.”

The corner of Aria’s mouth twitched slightly.  Shepard wasn’t far gone enough to completely forget her manners, at least.  Aria inclined her head.  “Shepard.”

“Thought you’d be in Omega,” Shepard said, slurring a bit and waving one hand aimlessly.  “Rebuilding your empire.”

Aria shrugged.  “It seems the galaxy can’t keep us apart.  Business dictated I return.  Apparently to babysit you.”

Shepard growled low in her throat and swiped a drink from the waitress’ tray as she walked by.  She drained half of it and then stared at the brilliantly colored cocktail.  A few minutes passed and then her silence was unnerving.    

“You’re unusually dour today.”

It took Shepard a moment to answer.  “It’s... not been going well.” She hesitated before asking, “you heard about Thessia?”

Her reticence was understandable, but unwarranted.  Aria had no illusions about her homeworld,or its leadership.  “No one can say you didn’t warn them about the Reapers.  It’s their own fault for dragging their heels until it was too late to do anything.”  Shepard looked relieved at the practical assessment.  People must be blaming her for Thessia’s fall, or she had taken it as her fault.  Knowing Shepard, it was probably both.  

“How sati-satisfying was it?”

Aria cocked an eyebrow at her.  Surely she didn’t mean the fall of the asari homeworld.  “You’ll have to be more specific than that, Shepard.”

Shepard threw back the rest of the drink before answering.  “Killing P-Pet-- that… that bastard.  General.  The one that took Omega.  Got Nyreen killed.  How good was it?”

“It was one of the most deeply satisfying kills I’ve ever made.”  The corners of Aria’s mouth curved upwards, and she sank back into the leather cushions.  Mind-melding during a murder wasn’t something she engaged in often, but that asshole had more than deserved it.  “You could say it was… orgasmic.”  She turned her gaze to the human, who was fidgeting with the empty glass.  “Why?”

Shepard’s face darkened.  “The fucker that killed Thane.”  Aria nodded--she knew Krios and about their doomed relationship.  “He was there, on Thessia.  He got away.”

“You have my sympathies.”  Aria had experienced that particular bitterness herself, when she’d been robbed of killing the bastard who murdered her daughter.  It was… unpleasant.  

The glass in Shepard’s hand shattered.  Blood bloomed across her palm, and the pain seemed to sober her.  “He got away,” she said again, snarling.  “He was there.  I was so close to killing him.  I could taste it.  That fucking smug ninja asshole.”  She ignored the shards of glass glistening on the floor and wiped her hand on a napkin.  Her implants had already healed the cuts.

“Smug ninja asshole?”  Aria’s eyes narrowed, and she leaned forward.  “Kai Leng… that fucker is still alive?”

Shepard blinked at her with wide green eyes.  “You know him?”

“I’ve had the displeasure, yes,” Aria growled.  “He killed… someone very important to me.  The Illusive Man helped him escape me.  I would have pursued him further, but things were… tumultuous on Omega at the time.  I couldn’t leave.”  She finished the drink in her hand and scowled.

“If I hadn’t had the Reapers to worry about, I would have hunted him down personally after he…”  Shepard trailed off and inhaled sharply.

Aria nodded sympathetically.  “How did he escape?”

“Ordered a gunship to level the Temple of Athame on top of us when he realized he losing and ran away.  Fucking coward.  We know where he went, but the Normandy needed refueling, maintenance.  Reapers took the depot near Thessia.”  Shepard’s jaw tightened, and she clenched and unclenched her hands into fists.  “I just want to… want to…”

“Wrap your hands around his throat and look him in the eyes as you choke the life out of him?”

Shepard leaned back against the leather and sighed.  “You get me.”  She took another drink from the waitress’ tray when she sat it down to clean up the glass on the floor.  She held it up to Aria in a toast.  “To killing fucking smug assholes with our own two hands.”

Feeling indulgent, Aria also took a glass and tapped it against the Commander’s.  “I’ll drink to that.”

“Next time, he won’t escape.  I’ll feed him his goddamn sword,” Shepard muttered and threw the drink back in one gulp.  

Aria was content to just sip it.  She had no intention of joining Shepard in the drunken stupor that was hastily overtaking her, judging by her unfocused stare.  She took the glass from the human and set it on the table before it also wound up in pieces on the floor.  Shepard frowned suddenly and looked hard at Aria.  She met Shepard’s gaze with an arched brow.

“What is it, Shepard?” she drawled after a minute, when the human made no move to say anything.

It took a few moments for Shepard to organize an answer.  “Did you mean it?”

Aria mentally reviewed their conversation.  Unable to think of a single thing that Shepard could be referring to, she let out an exasperated sigh.  “Your inability to be specific when you’re drunk is exhausting.”

Shepard cocked her head like a confused varren pup.

“Did I mean _what_ , Shepard?”

“The kiss.”

“Oh, hell.”  The memory rose unbidden.  It had been an impulsive thing when she was high off ousting Cerberus and reclaiming her rightful place on Omega.  She truly wouldn’t have been able to accomplish it without Shepard.  The kiss had been intended to be a mostly chaste show of gratitude… until Shepard melted into it and reciprocated.  That had been unexpected, though not unwelcome.  She’d be lying if she said she didn’t have _any_ interest in the human.  

“You’re smiling.  You like me.”

Aria shook the memory loose and glared Shepard, who looked at her with drooping eyes and a dopey grin.  She was starting to pitch sideways against the back of the couch, unable to keep herself upright anymore.  Aria rolled her eyes hard.  “Go to sleep, Shepard.  You’re drunk.”

Shepard curled up on the couch, her head just inches from Aria’s thigh.  She pillowed her head    on her arms and looked up at Aria through her wavy red bangs.  “I like you, too.”

“ _Sleep_ , Shepard.”  When the human’s breathing steadied into an alcoholic snore, Aria sighed. She pulled out a data pad to review the latest reports from Omega, and considered what the human had implied.

Shepard woke several hours later with a pained groan.  Aria had no idea how many drinks Shepard had downed before Grizz carried her over, but she was willing to bet on several given how badly Shepard flinched at the now-dimmed neon glow illuminating the lounge.  She jolted upright, looking around in confusion, and then settled slightly when her green eyes met Aria’s blue.  

Aria gave her a slight nod and gestured to the table, where a pitcher of water sat.  Shepard sat up, poured herself a glass, and drained it like a woman who’d just crossed a desert.  She rubbed at her eyes.  “What time is it?” she asked and set the glass down.

“About ten in the morning, Citadel standard.”  Long past after hours, but the club’s owner knew better than to try and oust her.  Aria hadn’t been able to bring herself to disturb the sleeping soldier.  She likely desperately needed the rest.

“Shit,” Shepard muttered and massaged her temples.  “I hope I didn’t make too big an ass of myself last night.”

The corner of Aria’s mouth quirked.  Beyond whatever fracus she’d caused at the upper bar, Shepard had been saintly compared to other humans she’d seen pissed off and pass-out drunk.  “What do you remember?”

“I remember coming to Purgatory.  I punched some guy.”   Shepard looked around the lounge and frowned.  “I don’t remember ending up here.”

“You may have punched someone else.”  Aria shrugged and stretched.  “I didn’t see what happened that led to Grizz carting your ass down here to sleep it off.”

“I see.”  Shepard stood and stretched upward until there was an audible pop in her spine and sighed with relief. She fished around in the pocket of her Alliance coveralls and pulled out several credit slips.  Typical of most humans raised on Earth, Shepard hadn’t entirely given up on physical cash.

Aria waved them away with her hand.  “Don’t worry about it.  I told you drinks were on me after Omega.”

“Right.  Thanks.”  Shepard rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly and pocketed the cash.

“Good luck killing Kai Leng.  Let me know when you finally off the fucker.”

Shepard blinked dumbly at her, not remembering their conversation, and then nodded.  “Okay, sure.  Thanks.  I… I should go,” she said and turned to go.

“Shepard.”  

At her name, she stopped and looked back.  Aria rose from the couch, grabbed her by the collar of her jacket, and pulled her in for a kiss. Shepard stiffened with shock, but quickly conformed against her.  One hand came to rest on Aria’s hip and the other in the small of her back.  She moaned quietly when Aria’s tongue slipped into her mouth, and Aria smirked.  The human tasted of stale alcohol, but Aria didn’t care.  She’d kissed far less appealing people who’d tasted far worse.  When she finally drew back, Aria caught Shepard’s lip between her teeth and tugged on it gently before letting go.

“When this is all said and done, assuming we both survive the war, you should come see me on Omega,” Aria purred into her ear.  “I hear there’s a queen on the market for a new consort.  Something you can look forward to... Harper.”

She made note of Shepard’s widened eyes and flushed cheeks on hearing her given name as she pulled away.

Shepard chewed her bottom lip for a moment, then met Aria’s eyes and nodded.  “Okay.  I’ll… see you later, then.”

Aria settled back on the couch like she never left and dismissed Shepard with a nod.  “I’m sure.”

**Author's Note:**

> dear bioware, plz patch your ancient game and let me romance the most attractive asari in the galaxy, kthnx
> 
> tumblargh is [here](http://kittlesandbugs.tumblr.com) if you wanna stop by and say hi


End file.
